St Christopher's is the Number 1 School!

Source: Herald Sun, May 14, 2026

We are very excited to share that The Herald Sun crunched the data for more than 2000 Catholic and independent primary schools around the nation to celebrate the best of the best. St Christopher's ranked as the NUMBER 1 Catholic primary school in the state and 3rd nationally! We were 18th when compared to independent schools. St Christopher's ranked higher than all Catholic primary schools including those that have both primary and secondary. These schools are often selective with enrolment, where local Catholic primary schools like ours are not. You'll also note our school fees offer great value for money given the results we are achieving.

We have a school with dedicated and talented staff, who work closely with bright and supportive families in the best interest of all our wonderful students. Our students are clever and generous with their time for each other as well as aspiring to be the best they can be.

From the article: Eighteen of the state’s top 20 private primary schools are large combined schools educating students from prep to year 12.

However, two standalone primary schools made the Victorian top 20 – St Christopher’s School in Glen Waverley and Christ Church Grammar in South Yarra.

This is an amazing achievement and I would like to congratulate our staff, parents and students for their spectacular achievement and especially give credit to Shane Daveron for his leadership in previous years to set the school on its course.

The Science Behind the List

The latest available education data was used to create this analysis of the top private primary schools in Australia.

Our team of data and education journalists used a formula that assessed more than 2000 schools around the nation across five key criteria, each with a different weighting, to create a final ranking score for each school.

The formula places emphasis on academic achievement but also takes into account student engagement, class sizes and school community demographics. It assesses:

2025 NAPLAN year 3 results across five subjects
2025 NAPLAN year 5 results across five subjects
Student attendance levels (proportion attending school at least 90 per cent of the time)
Student-teacher ratio (based on full-time equivalent teaching staff and enrolments)
ICSEA (Index of Community Socio-Educational Advantage) rating

To ensure statistical accuracy, we assessed NAPLAN scores against the band of results for each individual subject rather than using raw averages, and used a range of techniques to prevent outlier results from skewing the data.

School fees were not included in the ranking formula but are shown in our tables as they are a key factor for parents in choosing a school. For Combined primary/secondary schools the official reporting data shows average fees from 2024 across all year levels.

At many Combined schools, fees for primary education are significantly lower than secondary, but the average fees remain relevant given many families keep their children at the same school for the entirety of their education.

Data source: myschool.edu.au / ACARA

We launched our Instagram account today and we would like all of you who are on Insta to like and share our achievements when posted.

Our new page will help showcase and celebrate the amazing learning, events, achievements and everyday moments that make our school community so special. From classroom activities and special celebrations to sporting events, buddy time and community initiatives, we look forward to sharing more of the wonderful things happening across our school.

We invite all families to follow along and support our page as we continue to celebrate life at St Christopher’s together. Follow for updates!

Lunchtime Clubs Program

This term, we are excited to introduce our new Lunchtime Clubs program! These clubs have been designed to provide students with fun, inclusive and engaging activities during recess and lunch breaks while encouraging positive friendships, teamwork and wellbeing.

Students will have the opportunity to participate in a range of activities throughout the week, including Lego, Beyblades, Rubik’s Cubes, Skipping and Drawing. Each club is supported by our student leaders and wellbeing leaders, who will help organise equipment, support participation and encourage positive play.

The Lunchtime Clubs program aims to create welcoming spaces where students can connect with others, develop new skills and enjoy shared interests in a safe and supportive environment. We look forward to seeing students involved, building friendships and making positive choices throughout the term.

Policy updates

Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools Ltd (MACS) requires MACS schools such as St Christopher's School, to make certain policies and documents publicly available to school communities. Our policies are published on the school web site and from time to time referenced in correspondence to families. This is to meet MACS’ expectations for communication between schools and their communities, and to maintain compliance with Australian and Victorian government legislative and regulatory requirements. Each year, principals attest to their ongoing compliance through the Principal Attestation completed in March. Every five years, the Victorian Catholic Education Authority (VCEA), as the review body for Victorian Catholic Schools, will review a school’s ongoing compliance through the school compliance review. Our Review is taking place this year, as well as a School Improvement Review which has a cycle of taking place every four years.

As such I would like to inform you that we have added numerous policies to our website and updated others. These are now available on our web site here. We are currently reviewing and updating other policies in preparation for the Review and I will likewise inform you when they have been added to the website.

I draw your attention to the following two policies. I encourage all parents and carers to read these policies as they include important information. They are:

Today you will recieve a new Photography and Recording Permission Form. The new Privacy Collection Notice states that we will seek permission for photo and video use for external publications but not for our internal community use. Hence there is no need to seek permission for using photos and recordings for the purposes of internal publications such as our newsletter, Dojo, school play recordings, classroom spaces and other internal uses.

You can access MACS specific policies here:

https://www.macs.vic.edu.au/About-Us/Policies

Policy inquiries can be sent to compliance@macs.vic.edu.au.

Always feel free to contact our office if you have any questions.

Catholic School Parents Victoria- Supporting Families in Catholic Education

Catholic School Parents Victoria (CSPV) has been re-established to strengthen the voice of parents and carers in Catholic education across Victoria, recognising parents as the first educators and key partners in their child’s learning, wellbeing and faith journey.

CSPV is guided by a Council of parent representatives from across the state, ensuring that the diverse perspectives of families in Catholic schools are reflected in its work and advocacy.

We invite you to explore the CSPV website at www.cspv.catholic.edu.au where you will find a wealth of information and resources to support your parenting journey within Catholic education, including guidance on wellbeing, faith, learning and key issues impacting families. You can also subscribe via the website to join the CSPV community, receive the quarterly newsletter and be invited to upcoming events.

You can also connect with CSPV on LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook to access valuable insights, updates and practical resources.

Together, we can continue to strengthen the partnership between families, schools and the wider Catholic community.

4 Critical Actions for Protect

PROTECT supports schools to identify and respond to child abuse.

Key features of the refreshed PROTECT include the refreshed PROTECT website.

The new website is an online hub for child safety information for all Victorian schools. It helps school staff find information quickly and provides access to guidance, training and resources. Updated guidance for schools on how to respond – based on each source of abuse.

Sources of abuse are:

Adult engaged by the school
Student-to-student
Within the family
Within the community

• Refreshed PROTECT 4 Critical Actions - IDENTIFY, SUPPORT, REFER and REPORT.

• New PROTECT 4 Critical Actions reference sheets and posters.

• School staff reporting obligations have not changed. This includes mandatory reporting and reportable conduct obligations.

• PROTECT is aligned with child safety policies that schools already follow. This includes the Child Safe Standards, Reportable Conduct Scheme, MARAM and Information Sharing Schemes

Orange Door

Our school cares about the safety and wellbeing of our students and their families.

Sometimes things at home or in a relationship are not OK or families can be worried about the wellbeing of their children or young people.

The Orange Door can help you to get the support you need, quickly and easily. It’s free and you don’t need a referral.

The Orange Door can help families. They provide support for concerns with parenting, relationships, and family violence.

The Orange Door is a free intake and assessment service for:

families requiring support for their child or young person’s wellbeing or development
families needing parenting support
young, isolated, or unsupported families
individuals and families experiencing family violence
adults using family violence
young people using violence in the home.

If you contact The Orange Door, they can help by:

working with you to identify the help and support you need
supporting you with the wellbeing and development of your child or young person
helping you make a safety plan if someone is making you feel unsafe
connecting you to services that can help like counselling, accommodation, mental health and drug and alcohol services, parenting support groups, services for children, financial help, or legal assistance
supporting you to access funding for basic living expenses and some other costs
supporting you to change abusive or controlling behaviour.

Each Orange Door location across Victoria has their own phone number and email. Students and their families can also visit their local Orange Door in person for support, Monday to Friday, 9am - 5pm. No appointment is needed.

To find your local service, see: The Orange Door – Support near you.

How schools connect with The Orange Door

Our school might talk to a student and/or their family about The Orange Door. We might encourage them to contact their local Orange Door to get advice and help if needed.

Ideally, a student and/or their family will get in touch with The Orange Door to seek advice and support.

Sometimes, schools might make a referral to The Orange Door without the student or their family’s knowledge or consent. Schools will do this if:

informing a student and/or family increases the risk to their safety or wellbeing
not linking a student to support increases the risk of their safety and wellbeing.

You can learn more about:

The Orange Door and how they can help you and your family here.
how our school keeps our students safe by reading our Child Safety and Wellbeing Policy and our Child Safety Code of Conduct.

Child Safe Standard Number 4

Families and communities are informed and involved in promoting child safety and wellbeing.

As Catholic educators, we have a moral, mission-driven and legal responsibility to uphold and actively promote the wellbeing and safety of every student entrusted in our care. Our commitment to the protection of students involves ensuring families and community members actively participate in promoting and upholding child safety and wellbeing. Our Catholic communities ensure systems, processes, policies and cultures encourage and respect the voices of children and young people.

PARENT HANDBOOK 2026